The Church Commissioners for England have announced the Church of England's new Head of Responsible Investment as Bess Joffe.

Joffe, who will report to Chief Investment Officer, Tom Joy, will join the Church Commissioners in August from Lloyds Banking Group, where she was the Director of Investor Relations - ESG. Prior to working at Lloyds, Bess was in senior positions at Goldman Sachs and Hermes Equity Ownership Services.

Responding to the appointment, Tom Joy said: “We are delighted to have appointed Bess Joffe to lead the Church Commissioners Responsible Investment Team, a vital part of the Commissioners’ strategy, affecting real change across a range of sectors.

“Bess joins us with an established record of leading stewardship efforts and we are very much looking forward to furthering the way the Commissioners engage across our diverse range of holdings. Managing the Church Commissioners’ £8.7bn fund in an ethical and responsible way is fundamental to the way we work”

Bess added: “I am proud to be joining the Church Commissioners at this exciting time. Real change is starting to be seen thanks to the efforts of responsible investors and I am pleased to be joining a proactive organisation which recognises the challenges facing our world. I look forward to working with the team to build further on their successes.”

Bess Joffe will officially start the role on 10 August 2020.